Nelsan passed away after complications from heart failure and fans will always remember his groundbreaking performance as Lafayette on the hit HBO series. His character was killed off in the books, but Nelsan‘s amazing performance inspired the writers to keep him alive and he was featured in all 81 episodes.

Alan Ball, the creator of the beloved HBO series True Blood, is speaking out to remember the late actor Nelsan Ellis.

The actor passed away at the age of 39 after complications with heart failure.

“Nelsan was a singular talent whose creativity never ceased to amaze me. Working with him was a privilege,” Alan said in a statement (via THR).

HBO also released a statement to pay tribute to the show’s star.

“We were extremely saddened to hear of the passing of Nelsan Ellis,” HBO said in a statement. “Nelsan was a long-time member of the HBO family whose groundbreaking portrayal of Lafayette will be remembered fondly within the overall legacy of True Blood. Nelsan will be dearly missed by his fans and all of us at HBO.”

Executive producer Brian Buckner talked about Sookie’s reaction to Alcide’s death during the panel.

“When people die in your life, you don’t always see it coming,” he said (via THR). “I don’t mean to be defensive, but I kind of feel like we’re honoring those characters. That was what the episode this past weekend was about. You don’t get to mourn before it happens.”

Watch the teaser for the upcoming episodes that was shown at the panel:

‘True Blood’ Season 7: In the Weeks Ahead (Comic Con)

FYI: Anna is wearing a necklace by Dana Rebecca Designs. Deborah is wearing a Fitriani jumpsuit.

20+ pictures inside of the cast of True Blood‘s final appearance at Comic-Con… More Here! »

SPOILER ALERT — DO NOT CONTINUE IF YOU DON’T WANT TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENED!

If you are a fan of True Blood, you have either seen the latest episode or most likely been spoiled by all of the reactions from last night so let’s get to the point – Joe Manganiello‘s character Alcide was sadly killed off the show.

“What are you gonna do with Alcide if he’s with Sookie? We’re gonna have a nice wedding and take off for Bermuda, then move away from town and stay there and have babies?” Joe told Entertainment Weekly. “That’s not the show. The fairy has to be with the vampire, so you gotta get the werewolf outta the way. You can’t have her break Alcide’s heart, because then people won’t like Sookieâ€”they’ll get mad at her for breaking the good guy’s heart. So it’s the only choice you have, reallyâ€”you gotta kill him.”

“I’m glad it wasn’t a vampire, ’cause I think that might have been emasculating,” Joe said when asked if it was the death he would have chosen for Alcide. “He hates vampires so much, then he gets taken out by one of them? Is it better to get taken out by a nameless hillbilly? I don’t know. [Laughs] I don’t know what to say.”